Breaking Pointe
by Coconut1214
Summary: Michelle Simms wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she felt responsible for one. Some Sasha/Boo as well.
1. Chapter 1

**Breaking Pointe**

Summary: Michelle Simms wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she felt responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 1.

Boo walked down the sidewalk, she didn't really have a lot of time she had to be work at soon but she needed to see if Sasha was okay. She stopped by the soccer field after school and was told that Sasha quit cheerleading. She wanted to ask her if that meant she was coming back to ballet. She tried calling, Sasha wasn't answering her phone.

She started walking up the Torres' drive when she heard glass shattering. Tentatively she walked closer and now she could hear shouting and screaming along with more things breaking. She heard Sasha's voice between her parents. She didn't know what to do, she was frozen on their door step and it only seemed to be getting louder and noisier.

Suddenly the door swung open making her fly backwards into the pillar next to her. Sasha stormed outside and was just as startled as she was. "Boo, what are you doing here?" she yelled.

Boo saw that Sasha was breathing heavily and her eyes and face were puffy with whips of tears still evident on her face. Boo opened her mouth but no sound came out as Sasha's grey eyes bored into hers.

The noise in the house had increased exponentially now that the door was open. Sasha looked back inside and shut the door. She looked back again when something crashed against the closed door and shattered, making Boo jump back even further.

Sasha closed her eyes and looked away. "What are you doing here, Boo?" she asked again, standing tall and slipping into the mask she wore so well.

Boo was still rattled by all the loud noises and breaking things and Sasha's cold glare wasn't helping matters either.

"Spit it out, Boo. I don't have all day"

"I…I wanted to…see if you….were…okay" she finally managed to find her voice.

"Okay" Sasha repeated. "I'm always okay." she said smiling but in a tone that sounded like ice had just frozen everything in its path.

Sasha's parents were always fighting; it just seemed to be getter worse. Because she no longer remembered a time when she was at Sasha's house when they weren't fighting. "Um…do you want to stay at my house?"

"I really don't need your perfect mother and perfect family shoved down my throat right now" People loved talking about her family and they all didn't really get the concept of whispering since she could hear them. They talked about her dad and Timothy, they talked about her mother pretending nothing was going on; they talked about how bad they felt for her. She was sick of it. She didn't need to hear the whole town discussing her life.

Boo was taken aback, Sasha thought her family was perfect? Sasha's parents fought, but she had so much else going for her, she was beautiful, thin and rich She had the perfect ballerina body and the talent to match it. People fawned over her; Fanny was going crazy without her. She only wanted to have one of those things, who wouldn't. It never crossed her mind that Sasha was jealous of her. She had nothing to be jealous about. "They're not…"

"Don't" Sasha interrupted her as her grey eyes pierced into hers. She knew what she was going to say. She always watched Boo and her mother, that's how mothers and daughters were supposed to act. You're supposed to be able to joke and laugh with them. She felt the tears forming in her eyes. No, she wouldn't cry for that woman, she didn't deserve her tears. "Your mother may be flighty, but she cares. Mine wishes I was never born"

"That's not true" Boo said almost immediately.

"It is, she told me that" Sasha replied with a bitter smile, then turned her head away so Boo couldn't see her.

"Sasha" was all Boo could say, she didn't know what to else to say to that. Her mother didn't mean it, right? She couldn't, she was her mother, mothers are supposed to love their children. Boo timidly walked closer to her. She saw her hands touch her face to wipe away the tears.

Boo reached out and gently placed her hand on Sasha's back.

Sasha's mouth formed a thin line as she tried not to make a sound and collect herself. "I don't want your pity, I'm fine" she said icily moving away from her. She looked back as Boo stood there with her hand frozen in the air where she used to be. Sasha closed her eyes and sighed. "Do you need a ride to work or something?"

The sudden change in her composure and tone was jarring. Boo was speechless so she just nodded her head.

As they drove to the Oyster Bar in silence Boo knew she was trying to help, but she always seemed to make it worse. Why was she always doing that?

Sasha pulled up in from the restaurant. "Aren't you going to be late?" She asked when Boo didn't move to get out of her car. Boo turned to look at her. "I'm fine, okay. Now get out" she told her with a smile.

Boo sighed she knew that smile, it wasn't her happy one, if she said anything more Sasha would just get mad and yell at her. So she reluctantly opened the door and got out. She stood on the sidewalk as Sasha peeled out of the restaurant lot and sped down the street.

The next day at school Sasha bounced in wearing a tight black tee-shirt and jeans. She was all smiles and being super friendly she even started flirting with a couple of the football players.

"She doesn't even have boobs and guys respond to her" Melanie said looking back at Sasha.

"It's like she's got this magnetic force field surrounding her and you can't help but be drawn in" Ginny replied as they both stared at Sasha giggling with the football players. "Or maybe it's a spiderweb?"

"Cheerleading really helped her giggle" Melanie quipped.

Ginny and Melanie were just grateful it was one of her good days. But Boo was still worried, there was something else going on. She tried to look for her after school but couldn't find her. She walked into to the studio hoping to see her there, she even hoped she'd walk in late, but she didn't. She had to work right after class. She knew Sasha was hurting no matter how many times she said she was okay. Even when it was only for a split second she could see her facade slip and it had been doing that more and more and then she'd just get angrier. She just didn't want Sasha to do something she couldn't come back from. She couldn't keep that all inside; if she couldn't talk to her, she needed to talk to someone.

Tbc…


	2. Chapter 2

**Breaking Pointe**

Michelle Simms wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she felt responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 2

Michelle closed her eyes and took deep breathes as she stood outside the door with one hand lightly atop the knob. Michael had taken Fanny out to dinner so there was no one else in the house. She hadn't been up here since the party. It wasn't like she was avoiding it, okay maybe she was avoiding it. Everything had happened so fast, she was a showgirl, then she was married and then a widow all in about forty eight hours. She knew life moved fast but she didn't think it was supposed to be like that.

She opened her eyes, exhaled and opened the door. Everything looked the same, Fanny hadn't touched a thing. It was still cleanest place in her house. Everything was as she left the day after they both lost him. Her dress was on the floor, the shirt she borrowed was hanging off the chair she threw it on when she changed back into her dress.

This was supposed to be there room; she was supposed to be a wife. She looked at the French doors; she walked over to them and threw them open. The warm heat of southern California grazed her skin as she stepped outside. And this was supposed to be her paradise.

It was peaceful night, with a small breeze brushing against her skin. She looked out at the endless ocean, heard the waves as they lapped against the sand, and saw a girl in a hooded sweatshirt stumbling along the beach lifting a bottle to her lips. That's not exactly peaceful, but not uncommon. She thought to herself, and then she looked closer. The girl was thin and had her hood pulled over head. She knew that light blue hoodie with a dancer embroidered on the back.

Michelle took off running down the stairs and out the back door towards the beach.

Sasha had fallen in the sand and was now sitting there facing the ocean her feet buried in the sand and her arms hanging loosely over her bent knees, her hood pulled over blocking her face and the bottle next to her.

Michelle sat down and picked the bottle, Sasha hadn't noticed her as she reached for the bottle and found it wasn't there. She then looked at her through glazed eyes. "Hey" she said slowly.

"Wow, Grey Goose" Michelle said looking at the label. "You don't mess around; go right for the top shelf. I don't think I was drinking straight liquor until I was at least nineteen." She unscrewed the top and took a swig and swallowed. "It is good stuff"

Sasha reached for the bottle and Michelle held it away from her. "That's why I took it" the young girl slurred. "It's mine"

"I think you've had enough, you weigh like ten pounds soaking wet" Michelle said shaking the bottle "You'll feel it tomorrow, don't worry"

"This isn't the first time I've drunk" Sasha said defiantly and tried and failed to reach for the bottle again.

"I don't doubt it Judy Garland" Sasha looked at her in confusion and even while drunk managed to look at her like she was an idiot. Michelle sighed kids today access to any information whenever they wanted it and still don't know anything. "Garland used to ask her dress designers to leave her room to hide her vodka"

"Whatever." Sasha replied and went back to staring at the ocean. Things were starting to get a little foggy and she was having trouble focusing, but she still didn't think she was drunk enough and she wasn't in the mood to hear Michelle's never-ending babbling. She thought if she stayed really quiet maybe she'd get the hint. But who was she kidding this was Michelle they were talking about, that woman didn't get the hint even if you said to her face. "You're not going to leave, are you?"

"Nope" Michelle replied with a smile. Sasha tried to roll her eyes but that took too much effort.

"You know you shouldn't drink alone" Michelle said to her.

"Why?" She asked just to placate her hoping that would make her go away.

"Because it's no fun that way" Michele.

"I wasn't trying to have fun" Sasha replied. "And I don't want company" she said and struggled to stand up, fell in the sand and tried again Michelle stood and wrapped her arms around and caught her before she face planted into the sand.

"How about we walk this way" Michelle said leading her towards the guest house. Sasha not being strong enough to fight leaned against her as they walked to her house.

She was too drunk to just drop off at home, it was probably better if she stayed here. "You should call your mom and tell her you're staying at Fanny's"

"Why? She won't care" Sasha replied leaning against the wall she walked over too when they got inside.

"Either way you should let her know" Michelle said. Her mother rarely cared if she stayed out all night, but this is what responsible adults do right? Make the kids call their parents. "Where's your phone?"

Sasha stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out her phone and held it out to her. "It's your idea" she said closing her eyes and leaning against the wall, it was taking all her strength to remain upright. And her mother was last person she wanted to speak to right now.

Michelle nodded and took the phone from her. She opened up her phone book and scrolled through it, she had a lot of people in here even though she was a bitch to everyone. "What is your mother under?" because she didn't see her in the M's.

"Anastasia" Sasha replied. "She doesn't like people knowing she has a kid"

"Mine either" Michelle said maybe a little too cheerfully when this wasn't a cheerful moment. It was just growing up most people she knew didn't understand.

She pressed on the name, then looked up and squinted her eyes, it was dark out by the beach and the hood of her sweatshirt had covered part of her face but in the light she saw something.

She walked over to her. "What is that?" she asked.

"What?" Sasha asked annoyed and tried to back away but everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. "It's nothing" she said trying to stop her head from swimming and focus. She knew what it was; she didn't drink enough to forget.

"It doesn't look like nothing, take your hood off"

"No!"

Michelle looked at her telling her she was respecting her space but she would go over and take it off herself. Sasha defeated, reached up slowly and removed her hood while keeping her eyes towards the ground.

"Look at me, Sasha" Michelle said with worry evident in voice.

Reluctantly Sasha picked up her head and looked at the older woman. Michelle's eyes widened and her face softened.

"Who did that do you?"

"I walked in to a door" Sasha replied.

"A door with a hand" Michelle said walking over to her to get closer look. "Sasha" she said quietly, a faint handprint was visible on her reddened cheek and an indent that could only have come from a ring. The girl turned her face away.

Michelle looked at her. "Sasha, why didn't you say anything?"

"You told me to suck it up, be tougher"

"I didn't…know…" And that's why she shouldn't be giving advice, she wasn't good at it. "Has she hit you before?"

"No" Sasha replied looking Michelle in the eyes. That was true, at least not with her hand. Her house was a constant warzone and she couldn't always avoid the crossfire. Her mother had her good days and her bad days and they both had to walk on eggshells never knowing what kind of day it was going to be.

Lately they seemed to be all bad. She knew she was pushing it, but she couldn't stop, she was annoyed at how weak her father was as he just stood there and took everything she threw at him, never standing up to her. She was just tired of the fighting and the pretending. Afterwards her mother just looked at her lying on the floor holding her hand over her face and walked away while her father just sat there on the couch silently. Her mother liked to fight about everything and he liked to pretend nothing was going on and she was always caught in the middle. They used her when they needed to and then forgot she was even there.

"Sasha" hearing her name woke her from her memories. She looked up and saw the older woman looking at her with a look of questioning, guilt and sadness. "Normally she forgets I exist, it's him she mostly goes after"

"Who? Your dad?" Michelle asked.

"Yes"

"Mostly him?" Michelle had to ask. Sasha looked away and refused to make eye contact with her. Then she noticed the change in Sasha's face, she knew that look and she led her to the closet that held the toilet.

She held her hair back and let the girl get rid of some of the alcohol she consumed. But their conversation was far from over. She cleaned her up and helped her change into some borrowed sweats and t-shirt and helped her into the bed. She did need to let the girl rest even though she knew a sober Sasha would be less likely to talk.

She went over to her couch, laid down and curled herself into a ball. She didn't really understand what this feeling was. Was it anger, horror, guilt, sadness? There were too many feelings. Feelings she wasn't used to having. What was about this girl that did that? Did she see herself in her? Yes, she did. This girl was her, the her of the past. The one she left behind and never looked back at it.

What was she going to do? What could she do? The only thing she did know is that Sasha couldn't stay in that house. If the toxins won't leave the environment, you need to change the environment. But how was she going to that?

Tbc…


	3. Chapter 3

Breaking Pointe

Michelle wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she feels responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 3.

Her eyes fluttered open slowly and she moaned her head felt like someone was rebuilding a house during a tornado. She closed her eyes again hoping that the pounding and aching would stop. It didn't. She inhaled and exhaled slowly and opened her eyes again, her mouth felt disgusting, that cleared her mind a little. She was on stomach with her face smashed into a pillow she looked at it, this wasn't her pillow, it was cheap and wasn't very soft. Her hands felt the mattress it was as hard as a rock. This definitely wasn't her bed.

She tried to get up and the entire world started spinning so she lay back down. She tried again more slowly this time and was able to sit up with her feet dangling off the side of the bed. _ What was she wearing?_ She thought looking down at the grey sweats and ripped AC/DC concert shirt. _Not my clothes_ she said still staring at them.

She finally looked around and saw a bathtub in the middle of the room. _Bathtub?_ She thought to herself. Not my house, and now she sounded like a reversed messed up version of the three little bears. _Michelle! She was at Michelle's house. Why was she at Michelle's house? _ Then she remembered and it all came rushing back.

_Where was Michelle anyway?_ It's not like there were a lot of places to hide in this house.

She let her feet touch the ground gently and stood up and slowly padded her way to bathroom. She flushed the toilet and walked over to the sink, washed her hands and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked like death, it was gross, her face was pale, well paler than usual and her hair was a mess with some of it plastered to the side of her face. She might have drooled sometime in the night because her face was wet. She turned the faucet on again and washed her face and toweled it dry.

She looked in the mirror again the hand printed had faded from her cheek but it was still a little red and the ring had left a small cut, other than that you wouldn't be able to tell she'd been hit. She pulled the loose sleeve of the shirt down; it was a good thing the bruises faded so she wouldn't have to worry about explaining those.

She walked out of the bathroom and looked around the place; everything was just haphazardly thrown around the room in disarray. She didn't know how Michelle lived like this. Her house only looked like this after a fight, but the next day the maids usually cleaned it and her mother assistant replaced all the various household items her mother destroyed, no one would've known that anything happened.

Sasha walked over to the table and sat down. She should probably leave, but she didn't have the energy and she didn't want to go home. She put her hand face down on the table and placed her face on top of them.

"You're still here!" Michelle said placing a plate on the table.

"Well, if there was some place better to be I'd be there" Sasha replied.

"I'm glad the hangover doesn't affect your sunny disposition" Michelle told the girl. "Here, eat" she said sliding the plate over to her.

"Did you make it?" she asked looking at the plate like it was an alien.

"Yes, its eggs, you can't mess up eggs"

"Yes you can" the girl replied.

"Eat what you can then, you have to soak up more of the alcohol." she told the younger girl and held out the fork to her. "I also got you a toothbrush, because your breath is rank"

"Thanks" Sasha replied picking at the eggs and putting the smallest piece she could find on her fork then eating it.

"Hey, I call 'em as I see 'em" Michelle replied.

"Do you have to be so…."

"Cheerful, happy?" Michelle interjected.

"Loud" Sasha groaned covering her face with her hands, her head was still pounding.

After she ate some of the eggs, Michelle waited while Sasha brusher her teeth. When she came out of the bathroom she was sitting on the couch. "Do you remember anything from last night?"

Sasha stood in the doorway looking at the ground; her hand rubbed the back of her neck. "Sasha?" Michelle asked.

"Umm?" the girl asked looking like she was confused. "What?"

Michelle sighed. "Do you remember last night?"

Sasha bit her lip and shook her head slightly. "It's blurry…I got sick right?" she asked innocently.

"You did" Michelle replied eyeing her.

"Well I think I'll stick to beer, red solo cup is my friend" she said with a small laugh.

"You don't remember anything else?"

"I told you it's fuzzy. I don't even know why I'm at your house. Why am I at your house?" she asked like that was the biggest shock. She really didn't want to give this town anything more about her life to gossip about. It was her life; she'd handle it, like she always did. What could Michelle do anyway, that woman barely had her life together.

Michelle studied the young girls face. She held her head high and kept eye contact. When she spoke her voice was even and steady. She was good, very good. She knew this would happen, she knew Sasha would shut down once she was sober. Her wall was up and her wall was three hundred feet wide, seven hundred feet tall and made of solid ice. If it stopped the white walkers, what chance did she have of breaking through it?

When she left for Fanny's to make the eggs since her stove still didn't work, Sasha looked so peaceful and innocent, the girl standing before her now was anything but, she was a girl that was forced to grow up faster then she should've, a girl that already knew that life wasn't fair and only fairy tales had happy endings. At sixteen she already saw life as a bitter disappointment. She wasn't expecting anything better. She felt the same way at her age.

She wasn't prepared to deal with any of this. She didn't know how to deal with this. If Sasha was going to lie to her, how could she help her?

"Where are my clothes?" Sasha asked finally breaking eye contact.

Michelle sighed and pointed to the chair she put them on. "I didn't wash them; they still have sand on them"

"That's fine" she said walking over to them.

"So, you're going home?" Michelle asked and watched as Sasha reached for her hoodie and paused. She knew she didn't want to go home. She didn't know how to help her with her home situation but she could help her with her ballet one and that was her ticket out. "Fanny's letting me choreograph a dance, I could use some help. I don't know what she likes. And you're her star dancer"

"Was" Sasha replied holding the hoodie loosely in her hand.

"Still are, she's going crazy without you" If she came back it would keep her out of the house for hours. "She'll take you back, especially if we make a dance that knocks her socks off"

"Is it going to be the cat's pajamas?" Sasha asked sarcastically and turned to face her.

"Now you're on the trolley!" Michelle replied with a smile. Sasha's brows furrowed. "And how!" Michelle continued. "Yep that's about the end of my 20's slang"

"And that's a good thing" Sasha replied.

Michelle smiled and saw a small smile cross Sasha's lips. Maybe if she's softens her up she'll talk. This was hard, how do people do this? Should she tell Fanny? If she did and Sasha found out she'd lose her for good.

They worked on the choreography until noon, and then Sasha went home to change.

The dancers were sitting on various objects around the studio waiting. Michelle texted all of them telling that class was starting two hours early today. So they all got there and the studio was locked.

"Sorry!" they heard Michelle say as she ran up the walkway. "I got all set up for the fundraiser thing and realized I forgot to get the place to actually hold the fundraiser, there's not many places here, so I had to run down the Oyster bar and try to get them to let us use it. And now I'm here"

The dancers just nodded and smiled at her, almost all of them had stopped paying attention at, sorry. "What are we doing here?" Boo asked her.

"We're rehearsing for the Nutcracker; Fanny's letting me choreograph the Rat King dance" Michelle told them pulling out Fanny's keychain that held about a million keys and trying to remember which one opened the door.

"Who's going to play Clara?" Boo asked shyly. Then they heard roar of an engine with music loudly thumping speeding up the drive, spitting gravel in all directions. The silver BMW convertible screeched to halt in front of the shocked dancers.

The glare of sun off the pristine car made them shield their eyes, they saw a shadow reach over to the passenger seat and then the door swung open. Sasha stepped out wearing dark sunglasses and a smile on her face.

"They got her a new car!" Ginny whispered to Melanie.

"What she'd do this time, smash all her dad's records" Melanie replied. "Sell her mother's jewelry"

It was what she did that really worried Boo. Something happened, because while she saw her smiling it didn't quite reach her eyes. And for some reason she was wearing a lot of blush. Boo also noticed the worried look on Michelle's face.

Michelle turned around when the car pulled up like everyone else. She saw Sasha get out with her I'm-better-than-all-of-you face and sashay past them. Michelle didn't know what to think of that, did they buy her a car to keep her quiet? Would that really be all it took to make her happy? She knew she remembered that she saw, she just wasn't going to admit to her or to herself. And she'd have to believe that that was the first time, because she had nothing else to go on. She couldn't prove anything if Sasha denied it.

"You're back?" Ray Ray asked her as they walked into the studio.

"Well, I didn't want to subject the town to a half-assed production of the Nutcracker." Sasha answered and whisked past her to the dressing room.

"The sad thing is I actually missed that" Ray Ray said to Ginny and Melanie.

"I know it's depressing." Ginny replied with a sigh.

Michelle walked them through the dance then sat back while they performed it. She watched Sasha's face as she danced that girl could compartmentalize better than anyone she knew. She threw herself into the dance and she was enjoying herself. This was her home this was the place she was truly free.

Tbc…


	4. Chapter 4

Breaking Pointe

Michelle wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she feels responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 4.

The girls were changing when Sasha walked in. She didn't say anything to anyone and just walked straight to her locker. Boo swallowed, steeled herself and walked over to her. "Did you get my messages last night?" she asked her.

"No" Sasha replied without looking at her. "I turned my phone off"

"Oh, I wanted to talk to you" Boo said, when Sasha came back to ballet she had been nicer and happier, and they were glad to have her back, then the other day at school she was withdrawn and quiet again.

"Well I didn't want to talk to anyone and that's why my phone was off" she said as she hung her bag in her locker.

"I wanted to see if you were okay" Boo said nervously.

Sasha slammed her locker closed and turned to face her. "I'm so sick of you always asking me that. I'm fucking perfect, okay." she said and stormed out of the room still wearing her hoodie.

Boo stood there stunned as everyone stared at her. Gauging her moods had become increasingly more difficult. At least they now knew what kind of mood she was in today. They thanked Boo for letting them know and walked out of dressing room.

"Okay, I want to see my snowflakes on the floor first, then we'll have the dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and then we'll have Clara and the Nutcracker Prince" Madame Fanny announced when they were all downstairs.

Michelle started the music as the snowflakes started dancing. She turned her attention to Sasha; she stood to the side away from everyone else with her arms across her chest. They hadn't really talked much since that night. She walked around like everything was fine and if she tried to say anything she'd just get biting sarcasm.

"Where is my Sugar Plum fairy?" Madame Fanny asked. "What are you waiting for get out there!" she told Ginny as the snowflakes hurried off the floor.

As soon as Ginny was finished Sasha and Jordan ran onto the floor and took their places. Michelle started the music.

"Stop!" Madame Fanny said loudly. "Sasha, why are you wearing that?"

"It's cold in here" Sasha replied.

"Take it off"

"No, I'm cold" Sasha replied

"I don't care; it looks terrible it's ruining the dance" she said looking her in the eyes.

"It's a rehearsal" Sasha told her matching her stare and got back into position with Jordan following her lead.

The rest of class watched the encounter silently while Michelle watched Sasha's facial expressions. She wasn't just trying to defy Fanny, she didn't want to take off her hoodie.

"I can't see the dance if you wearing a sweatshirt, so take it off" Fanny said putting emphasis on the last part. She really wasn't in the mood to deal with Sasha's moods today.

"You can see it just fine, when I have it on" Sasha replied defiantly.

"No, I can't" Fanny replied back. She was getting angrier now. She knew the best ones were always the most difficult ones. But this was her studio, so her dancers had to follow her rules. "Did you go tanning again?"

"No" Sasha answered.

"Then take it off!" Fanny yelled this time.

"I told you I'm cold" she replied locking her eyes onto Fanny's. "And it's just a rehearsal"

"Just a rehearsal!" Fanny repeated. "It is just a rehearsal and for a rehearsal I want to see the dance performed as if it were the real thing"

"I won't be wearing this during the real thing"

"Well that's good, so take it off now"

"No!"

"Yes!" Fanny yelled right back. Sasha was fearless. That's what made her an amazing dancer but a terrible listener. "Sasha, I'm not going to continue this rehearsal until you take that sweatshirt off"

"Then I guess we're done rehearsing for today" she said and walked off the floor and out the door.

Now it was Fanny's turn to be stunned. Sasha was rebellious but never over something as simple as sweatshirt and if she did have tan lines she would love to shove that in her face. "Why do the best one always have to be such divas?" she asked and waited for an answer from Michelle when she didn't receive one she looked over and saw Michelle's back as the door closed behind her.

Fanny turned towards the other students and they all sat there as if they had been frozen in place. She didn't blame them; she was also confused as to what just happened.

Michelle ran after Sasha and reached out to grab her hand; the girl ripped her hand out of Michelle's reach and spun around. "What!" she yelled.

"What?" Michelle asked. "That's my question, what was that?"

"Nothing" Sasha replied through gritted teeth.

"You like that word, don't you?" Michelle told her. "Get in" she told her pointing towards her house. Sasha stood her ground for a minute then stomped off into her house.

"Do you want me to help you take your hoodie off?" Michelle asked. "Because it's hot in here, the A/C's broken." She told the young girl and she knew was already feeling the heat, because it was like a sauna in here. "I know you remember so you know I didn't forget. What are hiding beneath the hoodie Sasha? Did she do it again?" She asked softening her voice.

Sasha was silent now, unable to look her in the eyes. "Sasha, please" Michelle said. "Let me see"

Sasha closed her eyes; she knew she shouldn't have come. She knew Fanny would never let her dance in a sweatshirt. She didn't know why she was here.

"Sasha" Michelle's pleading voice broke through her thoughts as she felt the tear start to well up in her eyes. She reached her hand up and slid the zipper down, with both hands she gently pushed the hoodie off her shoulders until dropped the ground. She felt more naked and exposed then she ever had in her life. Her heartbeat increased and she started shaking as slowly turned her back to Michelle.

Michelle's hands covered her mouth. It was if someone had stained her skin with a multitude of different hues, colors that normally should not be on someone's skin. The bruise was covering up most of her right shoulder. She let her pretend her lie had worked. And now she was hurt again. And maybe this was what she was used too. "How? What?" Is all Michelle could say as stared at her back and her eyes started watering.

"A ceramic bowl on our coffee table I think she thought it would break. It didn't" Sasha replied.

Fanny told the class to keep rehearsing, gave them the order she wanted them to go in and told them she'd be back to see their performances and they better be perfect. Then she walked out of the studio to find Michelle. She heard voices coming from the guest house so she walked in that direction.

"Michelle you can't just…" Fanny began and her voice caught in her throat as she Sasha's back. She looked at Michelle who was still looking at Sasha. "Sasha, what happened? What is that?"

"A ceramic bowl? She threw a…" Michelle asked barely even registering Fanny's presence.

"Who threw a ceramic bowl?" Fanny asked trying to understand what was going on. Then her mind started putting things together, a bowl and a bruise. "Who threw a ceramic bowl at you?" she asked the young girl who had gracefully and silently slid her hoodie back on.

"You said that was the first time she hit you...you meant with her hand" Michelle said still trying to take everything in. How long has this been going on? She thought she understood, but she didn't. Her mother ignored her and she ignored her mother, there had never been any hitting.

"Who hit her with her hand?" Fanny asked, she was being ignored and she was confused and scared. "Sasha?" She was starting to get really worried now. Her rebellious behavior had gotten worse, but she still thought she was just acting out. Her parents never disciplined her so she thought she didn't need any, but was there something else going on in her house, something worse? Because the thoughts running through her mind right now were. "Did you know about this?" She turned to Michelle and asked.

"I..." Michelle didn't know what to say. It was her fault, she did know and she let her go back. And now Fanny was looking at her like only a mother could. Which confirmed how terrible a mother she would've made.

They both turned to look at her. "Sasha?" they both said to the empty space where the young girl had stood. She was gone.

Tbc...


	5. Chapter 5

Breaking Pointe

Michelle wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she feels responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 5

They both ran out of the house and saw Sasha speeding away down the driveway. "How did we not hear her leave?" Michelle asked.

"She's a ballerina she's trained to move silently" Fanny answered sadly watching the dust roll behind Sasha's car as it disappeared.

Sasha's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly as she drove. She hated people feeling sorry for her. She didn't need people feeling sorry for her.

She wanted to scream and cry, she wanted to leave this boring town and never look back. Tears were beginning to well in her eyes. She turned the car into empty lot of Paradise Gourmet foods. The place the town shut down because it was too big, too modern. They liked the sweet simplicity of having nothing to do, ever.

She hated this town so much; she hated everything so much right now. Her eyes fixed on a tree in front of her, it was tall and sturdy and she kept staring at it. Her breathing was becoming labored and she couldn't take her eyes off of it. She revved the engine of her car; the sound vibrated through her body, it could be that easy just to end it. Her foot pressed on the gas and the car sped up.

The tree was getting closer and closer and her heartbeat was getting faster and faster. She screamed as she twisted the wheel hard to right, the car jumped up on the curb and bounced as it flew off of it onto the pavement, she slammed on the brakes and the car spun in circles her back smashed into the seat, her shoulder hit the window, before coming to a stop.

Her white knuckles were glued to the steering wheel and her arms were so tight they were shaking uncontrollably as she tried to catch her breath between the loud sobs that were leaving her throat. Her head bent down and she cried.

She heard a tap at her window so she slowly turned to look and she saw Godot standing there in his blue cut of shirt and board shorts.

"Are you okay?" he asked in his lazy surfer drawl.

She was still breathing heavily; she looked to her shaking foot that was still smashed on the brake pedal. She slowly reached over and put the car in park. She wiped her eyes, then she pressed the button to lower the window. She was still trying to focus on breathing so she couldn't say anything.

"Can I open the door?" Godot asked her and she nodded her head. He gently opened the door of her car and kneeled down besides her. "Sasha look at me" he said in a soft gentle voice. She looked at him surprised he knew her name. "Are you okay?" he asked again once she made eye contact with him.

She was, she was just still shaken by what she almost did._ I guess I don't want to die _she thought to herself_. _However both of her shoulders were throbbing now. She was a dancer she knew how to handle pain so she nodded and managed to squeak out a "Yes."

"That's good" he replied.

"How did you know my name?" she asked him as she started to breath normally. She needed to focus on anything else but what could've happened. Then she sighed. "Never mind, this whole town loves to talk about me and my family, so of course you know me, I'm the girl with the gay dad and the mother that pretends not to notice"

Godot just started at her. "I don't listen to gossip, never did any good" he said lazily. "You're one of Bettina's friends"

"Yea" she replied, forgetting that he worked at the Oyster Bar with Boo.

"And you ordered a cup of cherries from me" he told her with his bright white smile.

Sasha bit her lip to stifle a laugh. "You remember that?" she asked well now she was embarrassed. That was not a good moment for her, she just got so nervous and completely blanked on any drink names which for her was sad, listing off drinks usually came to her as easily as listing of the guys in One Direction, she'd been mixing drinks for her mother since she was seven.

"You sure you're okay?" he asked again.

"Again, I'm fine" she replied more strongly. "You don't have to stay here; you can go back and do… whatever it is you do"

Godot tilted his head and looked at her. "It's getting dark; it wouldn't feel right leaving you out here"

"And what could you do if we get mugged, by the time you get out a sentence out we'd both be dead" Sasha scoffed at him.

"Wow" he said barely sounding phased by her remark. "You've got some moods on you"

"Yea, I'm like the ocean that way" she replied in term he might be able to understand. Her shoulder was throbbing and she was feeling the beginnings of a headache and she really didn't need to be talking a guy that wore the same outfit every day.

"How's that working out for you?" he asked. Her eyebrows rose as she looked at him. "Does it make you happier to push everyone away?"

She looked at him then turned to stare out the front of her car. "It must be nice to be you, to not have a care in the world. I don't have that luxury"

"Maybe not" he replied with his head nodding. "But the world is full of people, you're not alone" Sasha held her arms tightly against her chest and stared out at the parking lot. "Is there somewhere I can take you? I don't think you should be driving."

He was right, shockingly. He was smarter then she gave him credit for. She wasn't alone; she just thought it was better that way. She closed her eyes and nodded.

His roof and door less Jeep Wrangler pulled up to the curb at the small modest house. Sasha sat there breathing deeply. She turned to Godot, "Thanks" she told him, and he smiled and nodded.

"I'll go get your car and bring it here, okay" he said.

"You don't have to do that" She told him.

"That's probably not the safest place for it. My roommate and I will get it"

"Okay" Sasha said and exited the Jeep. "Thanks" she said to him again. She exhaled and looked at the house. This house could probably fit inside her house, but it was more of a home then hers would ever be. She went to the door and rang the bell. She knew Godot was still sitting in his Jeep at the curb; he was waiting for her to get in the house before he left.

The door opened wide. "Sasha" the big smiling woman said to her.

"Hello, Mrs. Jordan, is Boo home?"

Nanette was completely shocked to see Sasha standing at their door. When she was younger she was at their house all time, even staying over for a few days at a time. Then when she got older she stopped coming around and Bettina was always at her house. She was about to answer when Boo came bounding into the room.

"Sasha?" Boo asked. She was surprised when she saw Godot's Jeep pull up with Sasha inside of it. Sasha stood in the doorway rubbing her left arm with her right hand and not making eye contact. There was something wrong, really wrong if she's coming here, she never came here and she never looked nervous. "Do you want to go to my room?" Boo suggested unsure of what else to do. Sasha nodded and stepped inside.

Sasha followed Boo into her small bedroom and leaned against the wall by the door. Now that she was here she was suddenly terrified to tell her. Even though she always tried to ruin her happy moods, Boo still believed in happy endings and that everything would work out. She still believed that Melanie's idiot of a brother would wake up one day in love with her. She always envied her endless optimism, because she knew better. She knew life sucked.

Boo stared at her unsure what to do, she was afraid if she spoke Sasha would say something mean or leave. She didn't know what happened at Ballet, because when Madame Fanny walked back into the studio she looked like she had aged ten years. Then she told them class was canceled for the day and that never happened, even after Sasha walked in with blue hair class had continued. So for her to cancel class something happened and she knew it had something to do with Sasha. But Sasha's car was gone when they went outside. She tried to talk to Madam Fanny about it but she told her not to worry about it and go home. So she did and now Sasha was standing in her room looking uncertain and anxious, two words you'd never use to describe Sasha, and that's what scared her the most.

"I'm not" Sasha said softly while staring at the ground.

Boo looked at her startled by the sound of her voice. "What?" she asked in a shaky whisper.

"I'm not okay"

Tbc…


	6. Chapter 6

Breaking Pointe

Michelle wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she feels responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 6

After Sasha left, Fanny sent the class home for the day. After what happened she couldn't think about teaching. The class was both thrilled and worried as to why they now had a whole Saturday to do something else. But that didn't stop all of them from leaving in a hurry all except for Boo. She walked up to her and started making all kind of excuses for Sasha's behavior. Sasha was probably the worst to the sweet girl but she kept putting up with it and kept worrying about her. She was a good friend. She probably didn't even realize how much Sasha needed her.

She couldn't tell her what was wrong if Sasha hadn't told her. So she told the younger girl that she wasn't mad at Sasha and she was handling the situation.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked Michelle as they sat at her dining room table.

Michelle couldn't look her in the eyes. "I thought…I thought…I don't know"

"You let me yell at her and think that she was just being rebellious, not that…" She covered her mouth with her hand, she couldn't bring herself to say it out loud, to think about how long that could've been going on.

"What do we do? How do we get her out there?" Michelle asked.

Fanny suddenly stood up and left the room, leaving Michelle sitting at the table confused. She returned a few minutes later and sat back down.

"Where did you go?" Michelle asked having not moved from her spot.

"To call Jerry"

"Who?"

"Jerry, Hubble's friend" she replied and Michelle looked at her not getting who she meant. She sighed. "The lawyer that gave you all of my stuff"

"Oh, that Jerry" Michelle replied. "Lawyer, good idea" She wouldn't have thought of a lawyer, because she was still unsure of what they were going to do. They sat there silently, Fanny was staring in front of her and Michelle stared at a spot on the table.

"Do you know her mother?" Michelle asked breaking the silence.

"Everyone knows Anastasia Torres, but personally…not really" Fanny replied still staring out at nothing.. "I've barely interacted with either of her parents. Fanny told Michelle. "Her father signed her up for my class; he dropped off a four year old that barely spoke any English and left" Fanny noticed Michelle's brow furrow in confusion. "Sasha's family moved here from Brazil" she told her.

"She speaks Spanish" Michelle said nodding her head.

"Portuguese" Fanny corrected her. "They speak Portuguese in Brazil"

"Same thing"

"They're similar but different" Fanny said.

"Well she speaks perfect English now" Michelle said, thinking of all those words she threw at her when she was drunk.

"She's always was a quick learner" Fanny replied with a smile, then dropped when she remembered "Her family life was never that great, I started driving her home after I found her sitting outside the studio after all my classes had ended, she'd been there for hours because her parents forgot to pick her up. Then she met Boo and Nanette started driving her home."

"So her and Boo have been friends for a long time" Michelle said and Fanny nodded and smiled.

"That's kind of how Boo got her name" Fanny said thinking back to that time with a wistful smile.

"From Sasha?" Michelle asked leaning forward, interested in the story.

"There was a boy in the class named… " She said trying to recall his name. "Justin. His family moved away, but he used to like to hide in the dress racks and scare the girls, mostly Bettina because she was easy to scare. He'd hide and jump out and say boo and Sasha not understanding at the time and because he always did it, thought that was her name." Fanny smiled "The poor girl tried so hard to tell her it wasn't and by the time she understood…"

"The name stuck" Michelle finished for her with a smile.

It was nice to reminisce about simpler times but it was also bringing back memories that weren't so simple. It sadden her to see Sasha after performances standing by herself in her little tutu when all the other parents ran over and fussed over their children. She knew her parents weren't there, she didn't expect them to be. Nanette tried to include Sasha in their celebrations but Sasha knew even then that her family was different. And she tried her best to make Sasha feel included, but she couldn't make up for parents that weren't there.

All the kids tried to impress their parents or afraid to let them down so their eyes were always looking for them in the audience. Sasha had nothing to distract her and when she was danced she was performing for everyone. And most importantly she was trying to impress her, and she did every time. Sasha had so much talent even when she was a little girl, when she danced it was if she became someone else and maybe that's what she used to escape her own life. If only she had known.

There was a knock at the door and Fanny went up to answer it.

Boo stood there staring at Sasha, she didn't know how to reply. She'd gotten so used to Sasha yelling whenever she asked that question so for her to answer it without her asking was a little shocking to say the least.

"Now you're not going to say anything" Sasha said with a small laugh. "If I knew it was going to be that easy to shut you up, I would've answered it that way the first time"

And she was back to being Sasha again. "What's wrong?" she finally managed to say, hearing the old Sasha again gave her back her courage.

Sasha sighed. "My life" She didn't even know what she was doing. Talking, telling someone about her life was hard because she didn't want too. She was supposed to be the tough one, the one that had everything under control. People looked up to her, they feared her and she liked it that way. It was her mask, her shield so people wouldn't see what she really was, a broken girl from a broken home.

"What?" Boo asked really worried now. Sasha's smile turned into a laugh only confusing Boo further.

"I could really use a drink right now" she said after she stopped laughing. Maybe she really was her mother's daughter.

"Um… I have water or juice" Boo suggested still not sure what going on. This was a side of Sasha she's never seen before and it was worrisome.

"I need something stronger than water or juice to help me forget" Sasha replied still smiling.

"Forget what?" Boo asked. Sasha was being weird and vague but this was the most she's ever said about anything so she was afraid to press her.

"My life, aren't you listening, Boo" she said with another smile.

"I…" Boo replied she didn't know what to say.

Sasha's hands went to the side of her face, then her hands slid through her hair and she bowed her head and she started laughing again, then Boo heard her laugh turn into sobs. She was crying. Boo ran over to her and Sasha fell against her dissolving into tears.

Boo gently placed her arms around Sasha as she cried. She'd never seen Sasha cry even when they were little; she was usually the one that made other kids cry. She didn't know what else to do so she just held her.

Sasha pulled herself away and used her hands to wipe the tears. She didn't remember the last time she cried this much. It was strange but it actually made her feel better. She always thought crying was a sign of weakness and that was one thing she would never show anyone. She had to hold herself together so she wouldn't fall apart. Falling apart was the easy way and she never took the easy way.

Sasha had gone silent again. She hadn't said much, so she still didn't know what was going on. But for some reason she just kind of knew what Sasha needed her to say. "Do you want to sleep over?" Boo asked biting her lip preparing for the onslaught of insults.

But she was surprised when Sasha just nodded her head.

Tbc…


	7. Chapter 7

Breaking Pointe

Michelle wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she feels responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 7

Boo was about to ask Sasha why she wanted to forget her life when they heard a knock on the door. They both turned as her mother opened it and peek inside.

"Sorry to interrupt, Godot dropped Sasha's car off and gave me the keys" She said holding them out. Sasha reached out slowly and took them from her. She didn't know why Godot had Sasha's car, but she wasn't going to ask, she'd seen Sasha's face and knew something was wrong. Something was always wrong at Torres' house but everyone was too afraid of Anastasia to say anything.

"Can Sasha sleep over?" Boo asked before her mother shut the door.

"Of course" Nannette replied. Sasha was welcome here whenever she wanted to be here. "Is spaghetti okay? It's not so much spaghetti as organic whole wheat pasta with a drop of olive oil and vegetables. I can make something else?" she asked hopeful.

"Pasta's fine" Sasha answered. She knew Boo was on diet so she didn't want to ruin it and in her household they only ate organic.

"Okay" Nannette smiled hiding her disappointment. She wanted her daughter to be healthy and happy but she also wanted to eat real food.

"I should probably go home and get my stuff, I've been wearing this all day" Sasha said looking down at herself. She was still dressed in her blue hoodie and leo.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Boo asked her.

"No" Sasha said smiling. "It'll be quicker if I'm by myself"

She drove down her street and saw her dad's car in the driveway. He shouldn't be home; he usually went out when her mother was out of town.

She pulled her car next to his, took a deep breath got of the car and made her way to the door. If she was lucky he was busy in his study watching tv or listening to music and she could sneak in and out unnoticed.

She opened the door a crack and slid through and shut it quietly. She turned around slowly and saw a bunch of suitcases in the hallway. Her mother should've left hours ago and those were Gucci not Louis Vuitton so that meant they were her father's. She heard someone enter the living room so she turned to look and saw her father staring back at her with a shocked look on his face.

"Are you going somewhere?" she asked him.

He looked at her and swallowed. He opened his mouth and closed it again. "You weren't supposed to…"

"What? Supposed to be home? I live here or at least I thought I did. Are you kicking me out?"

"No" he answered quickly.

"Then I'll go back to my original question, are you going somewhere?" This time she asked it more forcefully.

"Yes" he finally was able to say out loud.

"Where?" she asked, there were a lot of bags and she noticed some boxes on the chairs in the living room.

"Phoenix" he said as he rubbed his arm nervously.

"Alone?" she asked already knowing the answer.

"…with a friend" he croaked out. He cleared his throat.

Sasha nodded her head. She knew what that meant and the pain cut her deeper than anything her mother did to her. But she pushed it aside and met his eyes. "Everyone knows he's not your friend" she said to him coldly. "That's all I hear whispered behind my back. Why do you keep pretending?"

She laughed when her father didn't answer. "I don't even know why we bother pretending we're a family. We're strangers that happen to share DNA"

He reached out to her. "Don't, just don't" she told him backing away from him. "You weren't even going to say good bye, you were just going to leave…me here with her?" she asked him. "You know what just go. I don't care" she said to him and ran up the stairs.

Her heart pounded in her chest as the tears welled up in her eyes, her shoulders throbbed because her anger had made her tense. She ran to her parent's bedroom and into their bathroom. She swung the medicine cabinet open and scanned the shelves until she found it. That was one thing she could count on her mother for. She took it from the shelf. She turned her head when she heard her dad walking down the hallway. She slipped the bottle into her bag.

Sasha" her dad said finding her in his room.

"I've got nothing more to say to you, go be with your boyfriend. At least one of us should be happy" She said walking past him.

She went into her room and to her closet. She pulled out her clothes and stuffed them into her bag. She walked out into the hallway and saw that he was standing in the middle of the hallway. She stood there holding the bag over shoulder and she looked into his eyes until he looked away. He wouldn't say anything he never did. "Bye" she said turning around and moving quickly down the hallway and down the stairs. She got into her car not once looking back to see if he followed her.

She backed out of the driveway and started down the street.

Boo stood looking out the window waiting. _Sasha where are you?_ She should've been back by now. She berated herself for not insisting she go with her. Sasha came here looking for help and all she could do was stare. She wanted to help and when it came time too she failed.

She looked at the living room clock, Sasha had been gone for forty minutes. It shouldn't have taken her this long. She wished she had asked what happened. Boo closed her eyes and opened them and saw her mother's car keys on the table. She looked at them then at the stairs. Her mother would be getting her brother ready for bed so that meant a bath then a story, she wouldn't be able to leave him home and it was too late to take him with.

Boo looked at the keys again, she only had her permit, so it was wrong and illegal to take the car. But something could've happened to Sasha and if something did happen to Sasha she wouldn't be able to live with herself. She steeled herself and grabbed the keys and quickly walked out the door before her conscious could change her mind.

She started driving slowly down the street not even knowing where to begin to look for her. Sasha never let her in, never let anyone in. Did she have a spot she liked to go to? Then Boo had thought, there was only place Sasha would go to, there was only one place that was more her home than her actual home.

Boo pulled up in Fanny's drive and got out to of the car and ran to the studio. She pulled on the door handles, they were locked. She placed her hands on the glass and peered inside it was dark. She whispered Sasha's name in case she'd gotten inside. Receiving no answer she ran up the stairs and tried that door, it was locked as well.

"Boo, what are you doing?" she swung around at the sound of her name.

"Michelle" she practically screamed. "Have you seen Sasha?" she asked hoping she had.

"Sasha, no" Michelle answered. "Is she missing?"

Boo noticed the fear in Michelle's voice. And that made her more scared. "She was supposed to sleep over at my house…she went home to get her things…she didn't come back" Tears started welling up in her eyes. "She said she wasn't okay…I didn't know what to do" Boo told her and sat down on the top step and covered her face with her hands.

"What's going on? Boo what are you doing here?" Fanny asked. She'd come outside because she heard shouting and sobbing. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"Take Boo inside" she told Fanny. "I think I might know where she is" she told Boo and ran past them before either of them could say anything.

Her heart was pounding in her chest as she ran. She shouldn't have let her go home. If Sasha was anything like her she could find much worse ways to hurt herself than alcohol. The pavement gave way to sand as she continued running. The beach was dark and empty with only the light of the moon for her to see by. She stopped and looked around and her heart almost stopped when she saw a figure laying still on the sand.

Tbc...


	8. Chapter 8

Breaking Pointe

Michelle wasn't good with kids, she never wanted kids, but now she feels responsible for one.

* * *

"I've got stuff I'm dealing with…you wouldn't understand" - Sasha Torres - Bunheads S01E09

* * *

Ch 8

Sasha was lying flat on her back in the sand with her eyes closed, letting the cool ocean breeze wash over her. She heard someone running near her, hoping they'd be like most people and just ignore her. "Sasha!" she heard from the voice that was getting closer. She sighed, of course with her luck it would be the one person that wouldn't leave her alone. Sasha rolled over to her side with her back facing Michelle when walked up to her.

Michelle let out the breath she didn't know she was holding when she saw Sasha move. She walked over to her and her foot hit something, she looked down to see a pill bottle. She picked it up and looked at it. _Oxycodone, where did she get Oxycodone?_ She asked herself then saw the prescription was made out to Anastasia Torres. Michelle walked to other side to see Sasha's face. "How many of these did you take?"

"What?" Sasha asked drowsily.

"These" Michelle said holding the pill bottle in front of her face. "How many did you take?" Her mind was begging Sasha to say none.

"One" she replied softly. "I just wanted the pain to stop and it has" She hadn't felt this good in a long time. No wonder her mother took these all the time. She could just lay here all day feeling relaxed.

Michelle looked at the bottle it was mostly full which is the only reason she believed her. "Sasha" she said kneeling down next to her.

"Go away" Sasha said to her. She felt good; she didn't want Michelle to ruin it.

"No" Michelle replied.

Sasha rolled her eyes up and looked at her. "Why. Why won't you just leave me alone?" she begged desperately.

"Because…" Michelle's voice caught in her throat as she looked at the girl with her dark hair cascading down her face, her eyes filled with so much pain. It was like she looking in mirror.

"Because" Sasha repeated. "That's it? You're the fucking Energizer bunny you just keep going and going …and going and if you hit a wall you keep banging your head into it until it breaks"

"Yeah, that's me" Michelle replied and sighed. "Maybe that's the reason I'm still alive. Because I did… some really stupid shit when I was younger"

"Just when you were younger?" Sasha questioned dryly.

Michelle laughed. "I like to think I've gotten better" Sasha just nodded her head.

Michelle looked at the young girl, she had drugs in her system and she still managed to keep her bitchy persona. She had to hand it to her, the girl had a gift. "I know it's not the same" she began telling her. "But I understand what it's like to be a stranger in a place that's supposed to be your home. I didn't have a mother, I had a Deb and that wasn't even her name. I just called her that because that's what I felt like calling her." she didn't like thinking about or remembering her past and she rarely did, that's probably why she was drawn to this broken girl. Sasha was her."My mother was a glorified roommate. She never cared where I was. I could come after three days and she didn't even notice I wasn't there. So I started finding excuse to not go home. I'd bounce around friend's houses." Michelle paused and looked out at the ocean. "I haven't seen her since I was seventeen. She's never called, never wondered where I was."

Michelle sucked in her breath as silence descended upon them. They both sat there watching the waves as they crashed against the surf. They were both lost in thought.

Michelle knew that's why she talked so much, every time she remembered; she had to quickly replace it with something else, anything else. Her life was a mess and she couldn't, she wouldn't let that happen to Sasha. "You know what?" Michelle said suddenly.

"What?" Sasha asked startled by the intrusion into the silence.

"I'm not going to let you go back there" Michelle replied. Sasha's raised an eye brow as she looked at her. "You can stay with me" she blurted out before she even had time to think about it. _What was she doing?_

"You?" the girl asked in shock.

Michelle held her head a little higher and straightened her back. "Yes, with me" she replied strongly. No one cared to help her and she didn't want Sasha to follow down the same path she did. She had talent and she didn't want her to waste it. And if she didn't want to dance anymore, she wanted her to succeed and she couldn't do that living with those people in that house. She turned to look Sasha in the eyes to get her reaction. Doubt plagued her mind like it always did. She didn't know what she was doing. She never took care of anyone but herself before. She barely knew Sasha and what she did know about her is that she was trouble.

Sasha had been letting Michelle's words sink in all night. Most of the time she barely paid attention to her incessant babbling, but tonight when she was talking she listened. She knew she couldn't live in that house anymore, not with just her mother. She needed a place to stay and she didn't think she'd be able to live in Boo's house for that long. Her parents were nice, but too much of that would drive her crazy. "Okay" she answered weakly. She was too tired to think of anything else and she offered.

"What?" Michelle asked surprised at her answer. So she wasn't sure she heard it correctly and that could be because it wasn't followed with sarcasm.

"Okay" Sasha replied and looked Michelle in the eyes.

Michelle nodded. "Okay" she repeated and exhaled loudly. _Now what? _

Tbc…


End file.
